The little bitch

ARGH... the little bitch is driving me batty. She tore into her bed today. That very same one in the picture below. Now I'm not sure if she can have a bed. I don't understand it. She's never done that when I left her with Khan in Khan's kennel. That is so frustrating. I try to be nice and get her a ginormous kennel with a nice bed and she ends up tearing into it. So annoying. If she does that again she will not get anymore beds.

Then, we go to the store for like an hour and I left them all with puzzle toys. Well, she decided to pee in the kennel. They have been outside for hours before I put them back in. Man, she's really not doing well in the larger kennel. I'll give her time. It's just so frustrating right now.

OK, so I returned the blanket I was using as a bed in her smaller crate. Maybe small changes. Maybe she needs time to get used to the larger crate. When things settle then I'll let her sleep in a dog bed. For now, we will just use her blanket. I hope she relaxes.

Stormy's Bedroom

Aww!! Look at her having fun in her kennel! Finally she has a place as large as Khan's. She deserves it, she's my pretty princess. I have to get more of those puzzle toys too. They all really enjoy playing with that thing.

Khan loves his XXL Kennel. :)

There they are, eating side by side in their ginormous Kennels. I love those things.

Hank says hi. He doesn't get a Kennel. I can trust him. ;)

Best of Winners and Best Opposite!

YAY!! Another point!! Khan is doing really well! He now has 5 points with a Major!! WOO HOOO!!!! I was wearing the same suit that I wore when we won his Major a month ago. I will have to stick with suits like those. They have been my winning suits!!

Stormy got first in puppy but she was the only pup. She didn't take Winner's bitch and not even Reserve. :/ I still think she's awesome.

Best of Opposite to Best of Breed

Yay! Khan won a point today! Now he has 4 points with one Major. First he won over Seven then won Winner's Dog over Blitz. They were the only males that showed. ;) Then, for the Best of Winners, the Winner's Bitch won the Breed so Khan got Best of Opposite to Best of Breed. :) The Winner's Bitch won over Destiny, a Champion that is being campaigned. That was a surprise. I can't wait to get the photo with the judge!! I had my peach suit on today. That's the second time I've won with my peach suit. :)

Oregon Specialty entries sent!

My entries for the Oregon Specialty and Portland shows are sent!

Hmm.. can you tell I hardly ever send mail with all the stamps on these letters? I'm trying to use the old ones up first. I ended up buying so many because I always forget where the stamps are and now I have a regular use for them, ENTRIES! I've gathered up the ones I could find and I'm starting to use the older ones first. :) I think it looks sorta neat.

Fun at Sarah's

OK, Here's how to read the ribbons on the picture above. They are placed in the order it was received. First day in Canby, Friday, Stormy and I did the sweepstakes show and won 4th place in the puppy bitch class. We won $8 (paid $5 entry fee).

The next day Khan got 3rd to Hugo and Seven, both his brothers. Hugo being first place then ultimately won Winners Dog then, I believe, also taking Best of Winners for his 4 point Major. Hugo was the ninth born, #1 rated puppy of the litter. So, anyway, Khan got third place that day. Stormy won first place, beating a very scared puppy bitch in her class. I forget who won Winner's bitch but Stormy took Reserve. I'm happy about the reserves for now. They are a good sign for better things to come. :)

The next day they didn't do so well. Khan took second to Hugo and Stormy won first over the scared bitch but didn't even make it for reserve. I believe the judge didn't care too much about puppies in general. That's ok, we had a really great time and maybe the next time we see the judge, me and my pups will be a better team!


Wee Hee!! They look like bunnies!

The pups love Sarah's place.

Stormy's cute butt.

Umm...I think Hank is having way too much fun with Andrew back there.

Pics from the Hunt Test

Aww... Check out all my pups on the chain gang. SO cute. They almost look like hunting dogs. :) And there's my lovely car.

Khan is shackled. I think he's taking it well.

He's so handsome.

Gad dang, he's beautiful.

My Stormy Storm.

Nice pair of dogs.

Hank is just soaking it all in.

My old man.

Everyone ready for bed time.

I think she's sneezing in my tent!

Next morning arrives early. This is the pretty hay field used for the Hunt Test. If you look close there are horses in the far right.


Food. Oh I was so hungry. I was soooo happy they had coffee and it was pretty good too. I had a lot of cups of coffee.

and more food.

Yummy strawberries and muffins.

So much food.

We celebrated this horse's 27th birthday. He looked really great for 27, I think.


I had a really great time at the Hunt Test. I got volunteered to help out so I met a lot of people. I really want to get into the hunting side of the dogs. I think they will do great. I'm not expecting spectacular phenomenal or anything.. just decent, really great. We are going to have a great time learning!

All nails cut!

Ugh.. finally I got everyone's nails cut. I meant to do it before last weekend's show but never got to it. I'm glad it's done because it was really bugging me. Stormy did really well this time around. She was relaxed and hardly complained. Khan did well too. Hank, not so well but not bad. He was the worse one but he wasn't too bad. We was just not relaxed like the pups were. Poor Hanky. I'm not sure why he tenses up so much. I've cut him one time and that was 4 years ago when I didn't know what I was doing too well. Geeze Hank, let it go.

They are doing really nicely. I tried to practice free stacks. Stormy actually does better with a toy than treats. She's more picky and timid. Khan is the opposite. He's all over it no matter what you have. He still hunches over on free stacks but oh well. I'm not really sure how to teach them how to free stack but I'll just keep doing what I do and get advise from everyone around me that shows their dogs.

I really need to get pics up here and out of my camera. Hold on.. I'll upload some.

My Sweet Dogs

You will never believe it but I have a witness to it! I had just bought a new bag of puppy food and had placed it in the food bin. Well, I forgot to close the lid and it was full to the rim. I forgot about it and let the dogs in. The pups kept running into the room and would take a while to come back when called. Finally I walked over there and saw Khan sitting next to the food bin hoping I would say it was ok to eat. Neither one touched the food!! I was completely amazed.

I'm sure it is due to the way I feed them. They always have to wait until I say it's ok to start eating. Sometimes I even have them stay in one corner of the room and wait for me to call each dog one at a time. They have to listen to their name and know who I'm calling. Once called they have to sit with the food in front of them, wait for all the other dogs to arrive and sit with food in front of them.

Once I see the drooling I say different words to see if they are really listening. They are only supposed to start eating when I say the word "ok". It's a game we play but I think it teaches listening skills and respect for me and the food I own. The training obviously worked as the food bin full of food was not touched by the pups. :)

More Show Pics

WOO HOO!! Stormy and I won her major! This was in Idaho, my 5th time showing. I was so happy!! Stormy beat all the girls and the best boy (her own brother). It was awesome too. The judge had us in the middle of the ring while the specialty dogs (Champions) compete for Best in Breed. That was a sweet view to watch all of the dogs together, showing off their movement.


For being best puppy that day, she competed against the top puppies in the Sporting breed and got third place! Sarah showed her and there I am changed into something more comfy. Great pic! She is my perfect little bitch.

This is a closer look to the ribbon above. They had a special competition for the top puppies and Sarah, the breeder, showed her to get this win. They did a great job together!

Show Pics and Pedigree

His parents and grandparents and on are all Champions. In fact, his grand-dam on his dad's side is in the GSP Hall of fame. I think his great grand-dam is also in the GSP hall of fame. Stormy has the same pedigree of course but I'll still order a copy of her papers. :) I would put up his papers here but I just read the advise to not do that due to some puppy mills stealing his info. ARGH! PUPPY MILLS ARE SOOO EVIL!

Stormy in her first ever show and she won reserve over adult females. :) This picture was the second time I did a show. Stormy got Reserve Winner's dog and I think that's pretty cool. She beat an adult that had a major. :) YAY!

I was sooo tired. I was oncall and worked overnight. I did not have any sleep. I'm glad Raven drove that day. I actually fell asleep on the way back. That's the first time I've slept in a moving vehicle. I was that tired.

A couple of weeks later we went to Spokane and Khan got his first Reserve win! This was my third time showing dogs. The judge was super nice and loved puppies. I really like her. She was even wearing my color. I was still a bit frantic in the show ring. There's video of this show in this blog if you look in the month of.. I think may 2009. More often than not, Khan gets reserve winner's dog. That means a lot of judges really like him.



And here we are again, with a MAJOR! This was my 6th time in the show ring. I put all the things I've learned in that whole showing weekend. Khan did so well. We were a great team. I was so happy for his win. The judge asked if I was ok and to keep breathing. :) It was pretty exciting to get a major for my pup. :) I had just gotten a major with Stormy the day before. :)

BISS CH West Star Cherokee Maiden Magpie

Magnificent Maggie Magpie
This is Khan and Stormy's mom. She is a really wonderful dog and will always be remembered as such. She had a great send off today and we are all glad she left peacefully and happy.

Bike Ride from the house.

Biking straight from the house is not the greatest but I suppose somewhat convenient. There is a bike shoulder but it's still so dangerously close to cars on the road. I really like the Burke Gilman but I have to drive to it which makes it not very appealing or convenient for everyday use. Pack the dogs, drive there, unfold the bike, ride, fold the bike, drive back. The driving to and from makes it lame but the ride itself is super nice.

I guess one thing that could make it worth the drive is swimming. I need to expose the pups to swimming anyway. A ride from the most northern point of the lake, on the trail, to the kayaking center at Sand Point is about 6 miles, one way. The reward would be swimming at the Seattle Raft and Kayak location with the pups. I think that would be pretty awesome.

I would just have to put on the packs for the bike to carry water and a towel, maybe even a change of clothes. It could work really well for the summer. :) I should give it a try. We don't go fast. It's really an easy jaunt for the pups. I'm sure they will be fine and it would build muscle, stamina and balance. I will start us off at 2-3 miles each way with a swimming session in the middle to make it even more fun.

:( Poor Hank has to stay home so much. If only I could haul him in a cart. I can't fit the cart in my car. :( I'll just have to keep walking him.. it will be our one on one time. :) The pups can rest and we can have a nice evening walk. :)

The pups and I rode from the house to the park and back. I'll google it and see how many miles. OK, 1.3 miles one way so 2.6 total and actually, we did a little loop-ty-loop around a couple of culdesacs so I'm gonna call it 3 miles. Not bad and they're still wrestling on the deck. I think they can do many more miles with the bike.

Puyallup Show 2009, Sunday

Same results. Khan got Reserve Winner's Dog. He definitely has something to offer. :) Stormy did even better today! But still didn't even get reserve winner's bitch. Ehh.. I think a bike work out and a good soak in Epsom Salt will really help all of us. I'll have to work out the pups and myself! :) I really can't wait to win something again. I'm hoping for another set of majors in 2 weeks at the Canby show!!!!

Hey, I started checking out shows in ID, and Cali and after looking at breed counts from the previous year, I'm actually considering a Dixon, California show for August 1st and 2nd. I would need 4 nights of hotel stay to travel about 6 hours a day. Motel 6 is only about $55 a night. That's how I like to roll. Something to think about. :)

I liked the ring we were in today. It was a lot bigger, more room to show off the pups' movement. I thought both pups did really excellent today. A lady that was watching the show even stopped us to say that she really thought both puppies were going to be chosen for Winners. I thanked her and I agreed. I think they are spectacular specimens of the breed and will CH soon. After championing we will shoot for the highest ranking in the country.

Merckx's family should have video up soon of the Sunday show. Wee Hee! Can't wait to see everyone in the vids! Everyone is excited to see Merckx!

Puyallup Show 2009, Saturday.

This show was my first time going at it alone. Well, not totally. Sarah's sister, Rosie was there. You know, she's the reason I even got the courage to approach Sarah about getting a pup. I was dead set that they were all spoken for. And now look at me.. I'm showing two puppies! Merckx was also there with Cynthia. Merckx is puppy number 5. Funny, that was actually his number today. :)

You'll never guess what I did. I got to the show, parked the car then realized I left my suits at home. I was ready to cry. Luckily I was there an hour and a half early and my housemate was kind enough to run them down. He was planning on going to the show but thought it was an early show. He didn't realize our show was 12:45 today. :) YAY, so I was saved. It's about an hour drive from Bothell to Puyallup. Thank God. I was seriously ready to cry on the phone, begging.

Argh, but no wins again. :/ Ehh, at least Khan got Reserve Winner's Dog. That's still something in my book. Just enough to keep me from feeling totally bummed. I don't get it though. I thought Stormy did really well today too as far as behavior in the ring goes. She didn't break gait.. well just once, maybe twice. :) And to be fair I wasn't the best handler for her either. I should have had her stacked way, way faster. I just get so flustered. I swear I will do much better tomorrow.

Oh well. There's no getting better without getting my self out there showing so keep going we must and keep getting better we all will. I hope we win something again soon. I'm excited for Canby, OR. It's 4 point major Saturday and 3 point major Sunday. I really have to get my game on. You just never know how it will go. Perhaps they will win again like in Idaho. God, I hope so.

I know judges think both Stormy and Khan are really nice in the ring. They both get reserve winners a lot. Khan is getting them more lately than Stormy. It used to be the other way around. For a beginner like me, reserve means something. I'm sure it is hard for most judges to place pups as winners. I hope someday they constantly take breed like Gunnar and Destiny.

For now, we celebrate the day with excellent dessert wine and key lime cheesecake courtesy of Costco. Mmmm.... this is truly how it's done.
I guess something good did come out of Yakima.. great wine!

Here are some vids from today's show:
Puyallup Show 2009
Khan and I come in about middle of the vid for Winner's Dog. We got Reserve Winner's Dog instead. Not too shabby.

Puyallup Show 2009
Next is Stormy in the Puppy 6-9 Months class. First Place! HA ha ha she was the only one there. :)

Puyallup Show 2009
Here she is again to try for Winner's Bitch. :( We didn't even get Reserve. I will strive to do even better!

Here they are lounging around at the house. I think Stormy is really feeling at home. She's Super GSP Girl!! So super cute.

1/W/BW/BPY/G3

It's official! The Little Bitch is mine!

1 = 1st place. Puppy class
W = Winner's Bitch. Winner of all Bitches in every class
BW = Best of Winners. Winner between Winner's Dog and Winner Bitch.
BPY = Best Puppy. In German Shorthair Pointer breed
G3 = Group 3. Meaning 3rd placement in Groups (Sporting Group) against other top puppies with in the different sporting breeds.

That win in Idaho gave her a 3 point major. :) Sarah handled her for puppy groups and got her 3rd place. :)

1/W/BW/BPY/G3 WEST STAR'S PERFECT STORM. SR537178/04. 11/17/2008. BREEDER: Sarah Kreilich. By Ch Minado's Oxton Greif's Encore-Ch West Star's Cherokee Maiden Magpie. OWNER: Sarah Kreilich & Zarah McIntosh.

WOO HOO!

He he, little bitch is the nickname Sarah gave her since she was born. :) She's my perfect little bitch. I'm taking her as far as I can, as well as Khan. I love my pups! I know I can't win them all, especially when their siblings are in the ring but I will do my best, every time.

Sarah will definitely still be a HUGE part of Stormy's life. She will basically be in charge of Stormy's breeding future. There are only 4, at the most, chances for Stormy to breed with the right Sire and produce phenomenal pups. Sarah's experience and knowledge is invaluable, priceless. She will make the best choice for Stormy's litters and we hope to produce more top GSPs.

Khan did well too on the following day, winning Winner's Dog, beating 7 other males for his first major! I was ecstatic. Both my pups have their first major and I handled them for it! They are truly awesome examples of this breed. I couldn't have won without that to begin with. This is a really great litter with awesome pups. I have two of the best. Actually, Sarah's first suggestion was #2, Andrew. He now has 7 points with his first major after only being shown that weekend in Spokane and Idaho. Andrew was the curious one but when I came down to meet and finally take a pup home, Khan blew me away with his impressive size. He was a TANK. I absolutely loved him.

I remember trying to choose just the right pup that would be the best in shows. The hours I poured over angles and ratios, trying at the same time to learn everything. I kept my mind open to Sarah's suggestions and advise for choosing the best pup. She has over two decades of breeding experience and her pups win in the ring every time I've come to watch a show. I would be a fool to challenge or question her knowledge and gut instinct.

There's never a guarantee in knowing how they will ultimately turn out as well as what the judges will like. That's why a big part of choosing is knowing that the pup you take home is home with you forever. It shouldn't just strictly be a show choice, the pup will be a family member choice too. Choose the pup you will love forever. Khan was definitely my pup. He was absolutely impressive and his personality is just awesome. Stormy I got attached to later. She's my little princess, a real cutie patutie. She is the perfect addition to my pack. With the both of them, they keep my Hankaroo, my Hankapoodle-doo quite busy. I HAVE THE BEST DOGS!

Thank you, Mankind, for wine!

http://www.sleepingdogwines.com/about.html

Oh thank the Gods for wine! I couldn't find a clean wine or regular glass so I figured it's just as good in a tiny french press carafe. I would like to apologize now for this blasphemous act but stress that I really needed some wine today. I thank all the Gods for bringing the humans wine.

We went wine tasting in Yakima and visited Sleeping Dog winemaker, Larry Oates. Super nice guy and really nice wines. After coming home (you will see in the previous blog) today, I'm glad to have a glass of good wine (maybe more than one glass). He only has 9 cases left of this particular one as production is limited to 72 cases. I'm tempted to buy a case but our hotel bill really scared me off. I might still find the funds, maybe. Right now I'm having a hard time justifying the hotel stay dog shows. I'm gonna give camping a shot :). Oh, dear wine, take this stress away.

Crap, no wins..

OK, so Yakima didn't go as well for us. That's how it is in showing. It all just depends on what the judge is looking for. You just never know who's going to make the win. First day the judge was really liking how Blitz looked and the next day the judge really liked Seven the best. Just hard to say which way it's all going to go that's why it's best to show as much and as well as possible for all shows to get the most wins.



The other bad thing is that the pups can get stressed or catch something. I don't think I want to do Yakima next year unless everyone is coming together for a major (doubtful, Yakima is a sucky place for dog owners and dogs!) It's just too hot for the dogs and totally not dog friendly.

Happy dogs:



I'm glad they are so happy again!